


Influenza

by Marasa



Category: Twenty One Pilots
Genre: Flu, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Sick Fic, Tour, Tyler gets sick, josh takes care of him, protective
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-11
Updated: 2018-01-11
Packaged: 2019-03-03 10:08:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,942
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13339011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marasa/pseuds/Marasa
Summary: At two in the morning, Josh wakes to coughing.And this is after they all swore not to get sick.





	Influenza

At two in the morning, Josh wakes to coughing.

And this is after they all swore not to get sick.

It’s considered one of the worst flu epidemics the United States had seen in recent years. It's almost apocalyptic. 

Each stop on tour, the crews of each venue are coughing and sneezing and looking miserable. Flu shots are being thrown out like free shirts at a basketball game. At least twenty minutes of every hour long newscast is devoted to interviewing sickly people with bags under their eyes and gravelly voices.

The band and crew alike promise to not get sick. They can’t afford to cancel any shows.

Tyler says that won't be a problem because he is extremely confident in his body's ability to fight off illness.

“I never get sick,” he says one night when they stop at a Taco Bell where all the employees are congested and sweaty. “You know I was the only one in my ninth grade class to not get the flu? Superstar immune system.”

“Oh yeah?” Josh says around a mouthful of taco.

“Best of the best,” Tyler says. "I'm awesome at pretty much everything I do."

He follows it with a burp of confidence.

Tyler is the most determined to not get sick. He's near obsessive.

His arsenal of weapons to fight off the flu is impressive. He carries around a pocket-sized bottle of hand sanitizer that he applies liberally. He begins to wear a surgical mask in public spaces and public transportation in whatever city they hit on tour. He substitutes most of his Redbull intake with orange juice.

The others aren’t as passionate in their fight but they’re faring well thus far. They still have Starbucks while Tyler has water, forego the vitamins that Tyler pops like candy for junk food instead. They stay up late while Tyler goes to bed early.

Josh thinks that out of all of them to get sick during flu season, he is a most viable candidate.

But Tyler is the first one to cough.

It’s the middle of the night and the coughing does not come from the bunk below Josh but can be heard from down the hall, on the other side of the doors of the bunks. Josh knows Tyler only leaves the bunks when he's having particularly rough nights, mentally or physically or both.

Everyone is still snoring and sleeping around him but Josh is stirred by the pathetic sound of discomfort and pain that are mostly muffled not too far away.

He grabs his phone from the sheets and slips it into the pocket of his sweatpants, rubs the sleep from his eyes and yawns before he leaves the comfortable warmth of his bunk, all because his best friend needs him. 

The coughing gets louder as he makes his way to the door, as does the sound of sniffling and quiet groaning.

As soon as Josh steps into the lounge, he nearly releases a soft  _ ‘aw’  _ at the sight of the lead singer curled up on the couch with a thin blanket wrapped around him, shivering and coughing and looking generally uncomfortable. 

Josh comes closer so he's standing above him.  His strong fingers thread through Tyler’s hair so he can push the damp strands back off his flushed face. The other man’s eyes flutter.

“Not feeling good?” 

Tyler barely blinks and doesn't say a word. Josh grabs a quilt and places it over the other man, making sure to tuck it tightly around him. His shivers lessen only a little.

His skin is pale and clammy, his scalp is sweaty. His breathing is congested and he winces at every little move.

“You look really bad, Ty.” Josh places the back of his hand over his forehead. “Jesus, you're burning up. Hang on.”

Josh hurries to the small kitchenette and grabs a small towel from beside the sink. He wets it with cold water and wrings it out thoroughly, folds it and brings it back to Tyler so he can place it on his burning forehead.

Josh wipes away the sweat and oil that covers his skin. Down his face and neck, the towel soothes his heated skin and then Josh is using his free hand to fan air against him so the cold trails left behind are even colder. 

Tyler’s breathing is shaky but he’s clearly relishing in the relief the action gives him. Tyler looks up at the other man bent over him, his gaze slightly delirious and mostly miserable.

Josh gives the sick man a reassuring smile as he folds the towel smaller and places the cool block of fabric on his forehead.

“I’m gonna go get you some medicine, okay?”

They have some pills in the first aid kit in one of the cupboards. Most of them are for allergies and migraines but Josh spots some liquicaps of Nyquil near the bottom.

Before he leaves the kitchen, he grabs a sleeve of salted crackers and pours a small glass of orange juice.

“You need to eat a little before you take your medicine,” Josh says as he places a cup of juice next to the sofa and opens up the sleeve of crackers. “It'll sit better in your stomach and won't make you sick.”

‘ _ How many?’   _ Tyler mouths weakly, eyes barely open. He's completely silent, mostly likely due to a very sore throat.

“Let's do three,” Josh says, “and two big gulps of your juice.”

Tyler frowns at that, eyes falling closed. ‘ _ Can't.’ _

“Try.”

Josh hunches over him again and helps him eat his crackers by handing them to him and making sure he doesn’t drop them from the loose grip of his fingers. Josh also makes sure to brush the crumbs off his front when they fall. Tyler mostly nibbles but the other man is patient.

The three crackers are eaten and the juice is sipped in no less than ten minutes. Josh carefully passes him the two blue pills and this time holds the juice to his lips for him. Tyler winces when he swallows, releasing a pained breath and collapsing against the pillows once he’s done.

“That should knock you out and hopefully keep you asleep through the night,” Josh says. “Do you need nose spray?”

Tyler shakes his head, situating his head as comfortably as he can on the pillow beneath him.

“You’re set for the night, then,” Josh says. “Do you need anything else? Another snack? Water? Kleenex?”

Tyler shakes his head again but gropes for his something in the folds of the quilt around him. Josh watches as he pulls out his phone from beside his leg.

He slowly taps across the screen with a tired gaze.

Josh’s phone dings in the pocket of his sweats.

_ 1 New Message from Tyler: _

_ Thank you so much for taking care of me. I'd be dead without you. _

“Dude, no problem.” Josh smiles and wipes Tyler’s forehead again with the wet towel previously on his forehead. Tyler gives a weak smile, eyes lidded at the coolness trailing across his heated skin. 

"I'm sorry you're feeling bad," Josh says. “Try to get some rest. Need you feeling better so we can do some awesome shows and take over the world."

Tyler’s bottom lip twitches, his chin scrunches up a little. He sucks in a wet breath through his nose as his fingers tap on the screen in his hands.

_ 1 New Message from Tyler: _

_ I didn’t want to let them down. But now I’m sick. It was all for nothing. I don’t want to cancel the show, Josh. It’s not fair to them. _

It all makes sense then. The near obsession with not getting sick, all the precautions- Tyler didn’t want to let the fans down.

Tyler’s eyes are teary when Josh looks back up from his phone. He looks defeated and guilty and before he can process it, Josh is sliding down on his knees beside the couch so he’s right beside him.

“Hey, hey,” Josh soothes, “don’t blame yourself, Tyler. It’s not your fault that you got sick. These things happen.”

A tired tear slips down his cheek and to the pillow underneath him. Josh wipes it away from his burning cheek and begins to stroke his hair once again.

“We’ll get you to the doctor as soon as we stop, okay? Get you on some real medicine that'll have you feeling better in no time." 

Tyler looks ready to object but Josh is already shushing him, gentle but still firm.

“The faster you take of yourself, the faster you’ll recover.”

It’s obvious he’s a bit hesitant but Tyler ultimately gives a weak nod. He takes out his phone again.

_ 1 New Message from Tyler: _

_ Please don’t cancel the show. Please, Josh. _

It’s too soon to tell if Tyler will be better by the time of the show in three days, but as much as Tyler doesn’t want him to, Josh is prepared to cancel the show if he is sick. Tyler’s health is first and foremost and Josh would take any precaution to keep him safe. He knows the fans would understand. Tyler is the only one that wouldn't.

He does not tell Tyler this thought because he doesn’t want him to freak out.

“Don’t worry about that right now,” Josh whispers to him with his fingers still massaging his scalp. “Just focus on getting better.”

Tyler is looking at him with a look of exhaustion, but there’s something there that glimmers with affection and thankfulness, gentle and soft. 

The path of Josh’s thumb over his temple becomes slower and much more gentle. They maintain eye contact, simply staring at each other with the beginnings of small smiles playing on their lips.

Tyler looks away long enough to send a brief text.

_ 1 New Message from Tyler: _

_ Thank you josh _

“I’m always here for you, Tyler,” Josh says with a gentle nudge of his forehead against the other man’s. He knows he might get sick from the close proximity but Tyler needs him and that’s all that matters.

When he pulls back, the other's eyes are closed, already dozed off with the help of the cough syrup in his stomach and the comfort the other so readily supplies.

Josh smiles and wipes the wet rag on his forehead down his face and neck once more. Tyler sighs in his sleep and occasionally scrunches up his face before giving small little coughs and sniffles that thankfully don't wake him.

He’s uncomfortable, that's for sure, but at least he's sleeping through the worst of it.

Josh grabs a pillow from the end of the couch and a blanket from an adjacent chair and places it on the ground next to the sofa.

He curls up on the floor of the bus and looks up to where Tyler is asleep. 

The lead singer is always trying to please everyone. His heart is in the right place, but his greatest attempts to pull through for the fans frequently meant not taking care of himself. It broke Josh’s heart but he admired Tyler’s love for the fans.

Josh strokes Tyler’s sweaty fingers where they hang off of the couch and toward him.

He wouldn’t hesitate to call off the show for Tyler’s health, but something tells Josh that he won’t have to because Tyler is one of the strongest people he knows, may be  _ the _ strongest.

He'll kick the flu's ass for sure, Josh just knows it.

He softly hooks his and Tyler’s fingers together, holding his hand gently. Tyler sighs in his sleep and squeezes Josh’s fingers a little tighter.

Josh isn't leaving him. Not tonight. Or ever.


End file.
